Hitchcock-Esque 90s Thriller Will Deliver You Seat-Edge Suspense
Here comes a 90s twist on the accomplished director’s classics.
Being recognized as the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock left a remarkable legacy that still influences filmmakers for their thrillers and horrors. It’s no surprise Vertigo (1958), Psycho (1960) and The Birds (1963) are great sources of cinema inspiration.
However, there is a lesser-known gem made by Hitchcock that became the base for a star-studded crime flick that is still rewatched by those who miss the atmosphere of 90s thrillers. Let’s take a closer look at this underdog take on the genre classics.
The plot of this film revolves around Steven Taylor, a Wall Street dealer whose both empire and marriage are close to being ruined. The point is that he finds out not only that his wealthy young wife Emily is cheating on him, but also a pretty wild way out of it.
Steven comes up with a plan to kill his wife and take her money to save his business, so he hires Emily’s lover to fake a break-in that will look like a random murder. You can already guess that everything doesn’t go according to plan.
Hitchcock fans have clearly recognized here the synopsis of the master’s Dial M for Murder (1954), a 90%-rated crime gem about a tennis star who arranges the murder of his adulterous wife. Indeed, 1998’s thriller appears to be a remake of Hitchcock’s film.
However, much of the original plot was rewritten and altered from its initial form, including the names of the leads. It obviously resulted in the remake not being as inventive as Hitchcock’s movie, but it is still killing it with great suspense and dark tone.
Titled A Perfect Murder, it stars Michael Douglas (Basic Instinct) as Steven, Gwyneth Paltrow (Iron Man) as Emily and LOTR’s Aragorn, Viggo Mortensen, as Emily’s lover.
“I know this movie is kind of cheesy and formulaic, but I really enjoyed it. I always love to see Michael Douglas’s evil side. He can be so cold and creepy,” concludes Redditor @MoreBlu about this movie.
Check out if this thriller does justice to Hitchcock’s masterpiece or not, as A Perfect Murder is now available for streaming on Netflix and Prime.